The invention disclosed and claimed herein relates to a device for measuring a force, such as a weighing device, and in particular to such a device having a force resolving plane inclined relative to the horizontal and a force measuring means as part of a measuring system for measuring components of the force effective in the plane of resolution.
A platform scale connected to a load measuring cell is described in German LP 2,331,149 which resolves the force or load components into vertical and horizontal components, the magnitude of the load being determined from the horizontal component. The platform scale has a load bridge supported by means of linking blocks on a guidance means in the form of an oblique plane which is inclined at an angle with respect to the direction of the force measurement. The linking blocks have a channel for a hydraulic agent, the hydraulic agent channel being connected via conduits to a device for supplying a fluid agent, such as low-viscosity oil. In general, this conventional device can be described as a device equipped with hydrostatic linking blocks for resolving a force for the purpose of measuring components of the force acting in the plane of the force resolution.
Producing the hydrostatic hydraulic agent film for effecting a friction-free movement of the linking blocks relative to one another necessitates the use of a hydraulic system, with all conventional functional elements of a hydraulic circulation means such as a reservoir, filters, pumps, switching element, and the like. Moreover, a dust-tight enclosure for the linking blocks is required because the hydraulic circulation must be maintained free of dirt particles. The component outlay required for this purpose is considerable, and moreover requires operating energy and an energy supply means.
The use of a hydrostatic support means for a weighing device, however, has the significant advantage of a rugged structure with substantially arbitrary transmission of the force resolution without the use of steel beams, levers, pendulum suspensions, knife edges, or similar mechanical devices which are conventional in weighing technology. Further advantages are achieved by the relatively small structure of the hydrostatic support for the heavy duty weighing means which, in contrast to other types of weighing means, does not require a deep scale pit. Hydrostatic systems further achieve optimum damping properties for the overall scale system.